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Charging station for electric trucks opens in South El Monte
Sustainability Jun 17, 2023
| Photo courtesy of Schneider National Inc.
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The increasing efforts to reduce pollution and increase the number of zero-emission vehicles on California roads has led to the development of a new state-of-the-art charging station in South El Monte.
Schneider National Inc., a prominent U.S. logistics company, announced the opening of the large charging depot at the company’s South El Monte Intermodal Operations Center.
The charging area — located near major freeways in the heart of the LA metropolitan area — is more than half the size of a football field and has 16, 350-kilowatt dual-corded dispensers, according to Schneider. Up to 32 Freightliner eCascadia trucks simultaneously will be able to achieve an 80% charge within 90 minutes.
“We can haul a similar weight. Obviously, we have a little less range so we have to be more thoughtful, and we get about 220 miles between charges,” Schneider National President and CEO Mark Rourke told ABC7.
The trucks are built for regional hauls, rather than cross-country treks.
“It’s ideal for these trucks to come back to a home base, a depot base like the one we are at, and have several hours to charge, even sometimes overnight to charge,” Rakesh Aneja, vice president of eMobility for Daimler Trucks North America, told ABC7.
Schneider aims to open more facilities in the future.
“We’re going to have to go from just a few hundred today to about 160,000 by 2030,” said California Energy Commissioner Patty Monahan told the TV station.
According to the company, Schneider has already started hauling deliveries for Frito-Lay North America and Goodyear with the new eCascadia fleet, which the company claims will move communities closer to a zero-emissions future that is crucial for pollution reduction.
“If you live near the port, you are smelling that diesel fuel every day, your kids are breathing that diesel pollution when they go to school,” said Monahan.
Schneider estimates that each day its electric trucks are on the road, that will move the progress toward its goal of reducing carbon emission by 7.5% per mile by 2025 and a 60% per mile reduction by 2035.
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